Monday, August 06, 2007

So, we went to Las Vegas to enjoy our timeshare. It had changed hands a few times, and the new HOA wanted to try selling us more stuff while discussing some favorable changes. We didn't buy, but we're happy with the changes and the inexpensive stay while we were in town.

Tuesday: We drove up on a Tuesday, and boy was it hot all week! It was 107 at Baker, CA (good name) on the way up, and 112 when we came home. It actually poured heavily as we crossed into Nevada, but cleared up as we got near Las Vegas. Once we got there, we just settled in and relaxed for a bit. We finally decided to read the Harry Potter series, so we we read some of that (cooling it at Borders) and generally just tried to decompress.

Wednesday: The next day, we sat through the presentation; time actually passed pretty quickly. As it turns out, Wynn had sold Bally's to Harrah's, which in turn tried to buy the property we owned (which was originally Ramada, them someone else, then someone else, and now "Summer Bay"). Anyway, Harrah's did something wrong and our HOA sued and won, and Harrah's settled by offering to move us one block into a 5-star facility (which they later regretted because they now want that property). There was a buyout offer that the owners voted down; the new facility will be worth much more if we hold on to it. We took the rest of the day easy, walking the casinos and playing a little badminton and ate dinner at an amazingly good Mexican place "Lindo Michoacan" -- highly recommended if you stop into Las Vegas!

Thursday: We actually spent the morning wandering through various casinos (thus seeing the giant chocolate fountain in the Bellagio) searching for treats Cathy can eat, and searching for hours for her towel. Now, the towel probably sounds very HHGTTG, and it's not a joke; the hotel towels were unusable for Cathy (too much polyester), and she didn't bring one with her. We eventually settled on a nice towel from the Paris Las Vegas casino.

Every time we are in Las Vegas, Cathy wants to see another show, one we have not seen before. As this vacation coincided with Cathy's birthday, we discussed seeing Blue Man Group, but Cathy decided on Stomp Out Loud instead. We got tickets and had a very nice dinner at a tucked-away place called "Rosewood Grille." After that, we enjoyed the show at Planet Hollywood.

Stomp was very enjoyable (YouTube clips); I was unprepared for the show, as I only knew that it involved percussion and unusual instruments, and I was thoroughly entertained. Cathy absolutely loved it. We had purchased middle-section tickets, off center, but the guys seating us moved us forward to the front sections, dead center, and those were great seats. It was a nice "happy birthday" upgrade for Cathy!

Friday: We had planned to see the MGM Lions and take it easy the rest of the day, reading at the book stores and playing badminton. As it turns out, it was so hot we tried to stay indoors at all times, so we ate a lot of watermelon at the resort, saw the lions around lunch, walked around the casino shops and read more Harry Potter at the bookstore. We had planned to watch the Fountains at the Bellagio casino but a storm moved in, whipping up a lot of wind with lightning on the horizon. We stayed home and at more watermelon, reading more Harry Potter.

Saturday: We went and checked out the tiger display at the Venetian casino and got to watch a tiger swimming; it was actually kinda cute (from behind inch-thick glass).

That eventing, we got cheap tickets to a variety show at Planet Hollywood, inventively named "V." It was hosted by Wally Eastwood, whom I recognized from this YouTube clip, where he plays the piano with juggling balls. We were very entertained, and the other acts were pretty good, too.

Oh yeah... during the comedic act of Russ Merlin, he talked four men (I was one of them) into raising our hands, and then asked for four volunteers. I didn't see the rest of the act, as I was under a mask, but Cathy found it absolutely hilarious, and we got tickets to Nathan Burton’s Comedy Magic Show, which we decided to see Sunday, after church. That same evening, we saw the Bellagio fountains and watch six or seven shows in a row.

Sunday: There's only one EFCA congregation in Las Vegas, so we visited that church on Sunday. It's a church plant, and the pastor is good (graduate of TEDS). I keep thinking that a church plant is a good idea...

At 2:00 PM we saw the Nathan Burton show, which was very engrossing and family-friendly. We got home at 10:30 PM, and we were very happy to kitties and Oliver, who were also very glad to see us.